Saint Joseph Catholic Church

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At a walk for peace that included Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament, the president of the Mexican Bishops’ Conference pleaded with government officials to provide the security needed to protect people from organized crime.

Bishop Ramón Castro of Cuernavaca said on May 16 that “governing means not refusing to take up the responsibility of guaranteeing the security and well-being of every person within the territory entrusted to them.”

Referring to a crime-ridden town, Bishop Castro added:

Our heartfelt plea without mincing words is that Huautla not be left all alone; that the government do its job to help the mothers searching [for their disappeared children] an effort which they rightly deserve; that transport workers be afforded security; that thousands upon thousands of merchants—micro, small, and medium-sized alike—be able to work without having to pay protection money; and that our young people be provided with real alternatives: quality education, decent jobs, and personal safety, so that organized crime is not the only door open to them.

In a brief interview with Vatican News, Cardinal Sebastian Francis of Penang, Malaysia, emphasized that the Church there is vibrant.

“The politics are quite stable and the Church is quite vibrant, quite alive, and we have many people inquiring about the Catholic faith as adults,” said Cardinal Francis, who was in Rome for an ad limina visit. “Many of them are requesting baptism as adults. That keeps us on our toes.”

“Even if other parts of Asia may still be experiencing some kind of persecution, we should not fall into a trap of having a ‘minority complex,’ a persecution complex,” he added. “Of course, there are real issues, but we will continue to tell the story of Jesus in Asia.”

Islam is the official religion of the Southeast Asian nation (map). 55% of Malaysia’s 34.9 million people are Muslim, 9% are Christian, 7% are Hindu, and 5% are Buddhist, with 19% adhering to Chinese folk religions and 4% to ethnic religions.

In an interview with the National Catholic Reporter, Archbishop Ronald Hicks of New York said that “under the Catholic umbrella, there are going to be different visions and different points of view.”

“We have to be a Church of dialogue and realize that just my point of view might not be your point of view,” he continued. “It doesn’t mean that everything’s just relevant and open to debate, but there’s something truly that we believe in, and that’s our core, that’s our belief.”

“I’m looking forward to listening, to dialogue, to grounding ourselves also in the truth,” he added. “Sometimes I think no matter what issue we’re talking about, we might not agree on everything that we’ve said, but at least somehow we can sit at the same table and be open to those conversations”

Asked about New York City’s mayor, Archbishop Hicks said that “Mayor Mamdani and I have already met,” and “we agree that there’s many things we disagree on.”

“The things that we do agree on, and if it can help the common good, let’s look for ways of collaboration,” added Archbishop Hicks, who was installed as archbishop in February.